


puppy love

by enbaisant (enpleurs)



Category: VIXX
Genre: Hybrid AU, M/M, bit of a noodle with limbs, jaehwan is an actual puppy, there's eventual porn but it isn't even dubcon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-05
Updated: 2019-10-05
Packaged: 2020-11-24 02:11:36
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 17,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20899952
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/enpleurs/pseuds/enbaisant
Summary: Jaehwan is a shiba hybrid who has been returned a few times to the shelter and has waiting to be adopted for years. Just when he's about to lose hope, he finds an owner - but Taekwoon's not what he expected, and Jaehwan really wished Taekwoon would lay off the vegetables.





	puppy love

**Author's Note:**

> written for a prompt: "Jaehwan is a shiba hybrid who has been returned a few times to the shelter and has waiting to be adopted for years. Just when he's about to lose hope, he finds an owner."
> 
> this was supposed to be <5k of straight up trash, but then i got distracted, so here we are. i promise there is still not!trash, just a bit far in. amazingly enough, this is not dubcon.

It really wasn't his fault. 

Jaehwan was adorable and had been even _more_ adorable as a three month old Shiba puppy and had been in and out of the shelter system in less than a week. But his new family hadn't known what to do with a puppy hybrid and he was dropped off at the same shelter a few months later. His second family had been great. They'd had a little girl that would grab Jaehwan a little too often but every time Jaehwan started screaming like his life depended on it, she'd scamper off. He'd stayed with them for almost a year, but by now, he couldn't even remember that little girl's name. They'd moved to another country and couldn't take Jaehwan with them, so back to the shelter he went. And then he'd been that awkward age where he wasn't a tiny puppy or a mature adult, and was instead a noisy adolescent with socialisation issues. So they'd known what they were getting into when they adopted Jaehwan. What followed was the most miserable years of his life.

He wasn't obedient. He didn't know how to be quiet. He jumped at people. He was too standoffish. He was too clingy. He ate too much. He was too picky. Every single problem Jaehwan could have, he had it. He wet the bed, had stomach problems, screamed when he was bathed, and was just disobedient. But he was lucky. He was fed and had a roof over his head and they could turn him out at any moment and he'd be on the streets and probably starve to death.

If it hadn't been for a neighbour that thought Jaehwan was screaming a little _too_ often even for a Shiba hybrid, Jaehwan would still be with those people—or dead. His owners had insisted that Jaehwan was just being dramatic but the hybrid protection service officers who'd been sent took one look at the bruises Jaehwan had supposedly gotten from falling down the stairs and whisked Jaehwan right back to the same shelter.

And that was where he'd been since. Not sold off and killed because that was _not_ what happened, the shelter staff had reassured a sobbing Jaehwan. He could stay here as long as he liked.

Jaehwan had grown tall and lanky, his tail fluffy and nicely curled and his ears sharp and alert. He spent his days taking care of the young hybrids, watched them get adopted one after the other into loving families with new collars and new tags with all their new family information, and knowing he'd never have the same. He was still loud and played as many pranks as the kids but no one hit him for it or blasted him with a hose. It wasn't bad, even if he knew he was unwanted and destined to be a shelter hybrid forever. At least they tried to give him _real_ meat once a week. 

In human years, Jaehwan was turning fifteen, but for a hybrid he'd reached adulthood. Once the year ended, he decided, he was giving up. Accepting it. Killing that last little bit of hope and dreams that should've died years and years ago. Besides, Jaehwan knew the only real reason why people adopted adult hybrids. If that was what awaited him, he'd rather stay here forever.

It was summer, which was the first reason the man caught Jaehwan's attention—most people didn't wear beanies in the summer. He was also fucking _tall_ and when he took off his dark sunglasses, Jaehwan's first instinct was to hide. If looks could kill.

Jaehwan scampered away to hide on the couch, watching him warily. The man wouldn't be here for him anyway. 

And that was where Jaehwan had been entirely, completely wrong.

"Jaehwan? Could you come here please?" Eunju, a kindly older woman who'd been the director of the shelter since Jaehwan had first arrived, called for him. Jaehwan had no choice but to slink up and stand behind her. He swallowed his whimpers as best as he could, but couldn't stop his flattened ears or tail tucking between his legs. 

Up close, the man was no less intimidating. He stared down at Jaehwan with dark intensity. Jaehwan found him strikingly handsome, like a sort of movie star. He was also wearing a large, oversized sweater over tight fitting jeans which had more tears than fabric, and overall looked far too warm for the weather. 

"This is Taekwoon," she said, beaming at Jaehwan, "and he's going to take you home."

Jaehwan gaped at her.

Take him home? The words did not compute. She couldn't mean that this man was here to take _Jaehwan_ back with him. A field trip? Sometimes they had those but Jaehwan preferred stealing those moments of peace by hiding in the shelter. He, Taekwoon, was going to take him, Jaehwan, home. Did Jaehwan have a different home? Or…

Taekwoon was going to adopt him.

Eunju rubbed Jaehwan behind his ears, soothing him until his ears lost their rigidity and twitched. "We've vetted him carefully and he'll be good to you. He lives alone and doesn't travel and has a stable income and household. We know one of his references very well. We failed you once Jaehwannie, we won't fail you again."

All this time, Taekwoon hadn't said a word. All he did was nod.

"You're sure?" Jaehwan asked in a small voice. This was happening. This was really happening. Taekwoon hadn't taken his eyes off of Jaehwan and Jaehwan's heartrate quickened into a rapid stacatto he swallowed away.

Director Eunju gave Jaehwan a quick squeeze. 

"Someone will check on you once a week—Taekwoon's agreed to this—and if you ever want to come back, we'll take you back. You're like family to us, but I think you deserve a forever family just for you," Eunju said. Jaehwan swallowed, tears suddenly welling up in his eyes. 

"You're sure?" Jaehwan repeated. Eunju nodded firmly.

"Taekwoon already has everything you'll need. But there's something important…"

Eunju glanced at Taekwoon and the man walked slowly forward. Jaehwan surreptitiously sniffed the air and could've sworn the man was _nervous_ but he also smelled...off. It could've been his cologne. He was holding something in his hands, something Jaehwan had seen versions of before and something Jaehwan both craved and was terrified of.

Jaehwan forced himself to remain still as his new owner buckled the collar around his neck.

"I'll take care of you," Taekwoon said, and Jaehwan had never heard such a soft, nice voice before in his life.

\---

The car ride was silent.

The windows were tinted from the outside but Jaehwan could still see out, to a world he hadn't been in for... more time than he could remember. _They_ had never taken him out. The shelter had had everything he could've needed. It was still mesmerising, the number of people, the number of hybrids there were. Lots of them. Shopping, playing, working, everything Jaehwan knew from TV but now it was right in front of him. The tag on his collar was the only sound in the car, the little metal clip occasionally clicking against itself. Jaehwan fiddled with it nervously.

It was a nice car. Not new, but still nice with nice leather seats and a sleek interior. A quiet AC system. Jaehwan wished his new owner would at least turn on the radio, but instead all Taekwoon seemed keen on doing was glancing at Jaehwan through the rear view mirror. Every time it happened, Jaehwan quickly looked away.

Taekwoon lived on the fifth floor of a modern apartment building with an underground garage. Taekwoon opened the door for Jaehwan and then made for the exit without a word, leaving Jaehwan to hurry after him. The smell of Taekwoon's cologne was overpowering in the confined space of the elevator and Jaehwan bit back a comment. His tail thumped rhythmically against his leg.

The silence lasted until Taekwoon let them both into an apartment and closed the door behind Jaehwan. He couldn't take it anymore.

"You _smell_," Jaehwan blurted out. The very first words he ever said to his new owner.

Taekwoon turned to look at him. Jaehwan cowered, knowing what was coming next. Especially when Taekwoon lifted his hand—

—and pulled off the beanie.

Suddenly the smell made sense.

"You're a _cat_," Jaehwan croaked.

It was unmistakable. Those ears. _Cat_ ears. Real cat ears. But he wasn't wearing a collar or anything and his eyes and no tail—but Taekwoon's sweater was big, really big. And he smelled. The apartment was full of the smell of cat but to Jaehwan's sensitive nose it was Taekwoon's cologne that was too sharp but Eunju said he lived alone and… and.

"You're a cat," Jaehwan repeated dumbly. "You smell."

"Come in," Taekwoon said. "I won't hurt you. Are you hungry? What do you like to eat? I can cook or we can get delivery."

"You're not human," Jaehwan said.

"Does it bother you?" Taekwoon asked, frowning. He was suddenly very close to Jaehwan, entirely silent and quick, and his hands were reaching for Jaehwan's neck.

Jaehwan slapped them away with a soft yowl. Taekwoon looked taken aback.

"I always found it uncomfortable," Taekwoon mumbled. He walked away from Jaehwan and into the living room where there was a large floor-to-ceiling window on one wall. Just looking at it from a distance gave Jaehwan vertigo. There was a couch with a TV that Taekwoon turned on to some daytime soap opera. He left a mug of water on the coffee table and disappeared into a room that Jaehwan guessed was the bathroom from the sound of running water. 

Warily, Jaehwan kicked off his shoes and walked into the apartment—his new _home_, he reminded himself—and sat down on the couch. It was a comfortable couch. Jaehwan pulled his feet onto it, wiggling his socked toes. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been on a couch that hadn't been subject to baby vomit. The mug looked new. Plain and new. Or just clean and well cared for. Maybe Jaehwan had just spent too much time living with young hybrids and couldn't tell the difference anymore. He bent down and sniffed at it but it seemed like it was just water. Plain, safe water. Jaehwan still didn't touch it. 

The sound of running water stopped and a door opened. Jaehwan couldn't hear anything else and nearly screamed when Taekwoon suddenly appeared in front of him. He didn't smell anymore, or at least he didn't smell bad. He just smelled… normal. The sweater was gone, replaced with a loose t-shirt and a pair of gym shorts. Jaehwan stared at Taekwoon's tail, swishing slowly side to side behind him. But, the eyes…

"Contacts," Taekwoon explained when he saw Jaehwan looking. He sat down next to Jaehwan, a careful distance apart. 

"I can show you your room or we can eat first," Taekwoon said. "If you want to rest—"

"Why did you adopt me?" Jaehwan asked, cutting his new owner off. "I'm…" _broken_, but Jaehwan couldn't bring himself to say that.

"I saw you on the website," Taekwoon said, as if that explained everything.

"_What_ website?" Jaehwan bit out.

Taekwoon looked bewildered and overwhelmed. Jaehwan knew that look.

"The shelter one," Taekwoon said. "You'd been there for years."

"Because I'm more trouble than I'm worth," Jaehwan said. 

"No you're not," Taekwoon quickly said. "You're not any trouble—"

"You've known me for less than an hour," Jaehwan said. 

"The shelter staff told me about you," Taekwoon said softly. "Whatever happened wasn't your fault."

"You're taking pity on me," Jaehwan said flatly. "That's what this is."

Taekwoon shifted and then shook his head. 

"And you! _You're_ a hybrid. Is this even allowed? Do they even know?"

"Eunju-ssi interrogated me very carefully," Taekwoon said. It was so solemn that it was almost funny. "It's... unusual. But they said it might be better." 

_He'll be good to you_, Eunju had said before sending Jaehwan off. Was this what she'd meant?

"So it's pity," Jaehwan said. He didn't know why this made him so _mad_. He shot to his feet, knowing that he was being entirely irrational. "Where's my room?"

Taekwoon stood up, far slower and started walking in the direction he'd come from, clearly expecting Jaehwan to follow him.

"Here's the bathroom," Taekwoon said as they passed by it. "It's next to my room—"

Feeling more like a child than Jaehwan could remember in a long time, he pushed into the room Taekwoon pointed out and slammed the door behind him. He could hear Taekwoon's long sigh from the other side of the door, but Jaehwan was left, thankfully, alone.

\---

Jaehwan fell asleep on the floor. By the time he woke up it was dark outside, although he could see a light from the crack under the door. It took him a moment to remember he wasn't in the shelter anymore. He had his _own_ room. It wasn't fancy. It had a bed and a desk and a closet and a dresser. When Jaehwan had poked about it earlier he'd found some simple t-shirts and sweatpants and underwear and socks, all new and unworn. He'd stared at them, wondering how Taekwoon could've guessed his size, before he realised the shelter would've told him. Eunju had said that Taekwoon already had everything he needed.

He stretched, shaking out stiff limbs and tail. The tag on his collar clinked and Jaehwan grabbed at it. There was a mirror above the dresser but it was too dark even for his eyes to make out what was engraved on the tag. He was also struck with a desperate need to _go_. He couldn't hide here forever. Jaehwan made a face to himself and before he could change his mind, bolted straight out the door and into the bathroom. And remembered the light switch was on the outside. He had to rely on the light that seeped through the cracks of the door. Jaehwan wasn't _scared_ of the dark. It just stirred up unpleasant memories. He fumbled as he did his business—remembering to wash his hands—and finally walked outside. He wasn't a screaming toddler, and he was going to act it.

Taekwoon was sitting at the kitchen table staring at a laptop, knees tucked to his chest with his feet on the chair. He was wearing a pair of fancy looking headphones but Jaehwan could tell from his tense posture that the cat had heard Jaehwan and wasn't doing a very good job of pretending he hadn't. Jaehwan wrinkled his nose, and after a moment of hesitation, marched over and sat down right across from his new owner. Taekwoon flinched so hard he nearly toppled off his chair. 

"I'm hungry," Jaehwan declared before Taekwoon had a chance to speak.

Strangely enough, the anxious look melted off of Taekwoon's face. He took off his headphones and nodded. 

"It should still be warm," Taekwoon said as he padded over to the oven. Jaehwan watched him with curiosity, ears perked up—the smell of meat filled the kitchen as soon as the door was open and Jaehwan salivated. His tail beat against the chair when Taekwoon carried over an entire plate of _steak_... and vegetables.

"I cooked it," Taekwoon said as he put it down in front of Jaehwan. He frowned when he saw Jaehwan's face. "What's wrong?"

"Carrots," Jaehwan said, shuffling back in his chair. "Spinach!"

For a moment, Taekwoon looked horrified. "They said you didn't have any allergies—"

"I hate spinach," Jaehwan said shortly. "And carrots."

Taekwoon peered at Jaehwan so intensely that Jaehwan wanted to take it back. He curled back, tail wrapping forward as he braced himself to be yelled at. 

_Don't forget, be good,_ Eunju had said, reaching up to give him one last scratch between his ears after he'd said all his goodbyes. And Jaehwan hadn't even lasted an hour. He'd grown too used to the shelter indulging his tantrums.

But Taekwoon laughed. His cheeks crinkled and his eyes disappeared. He sat down again across from Jaehwan and closed the lid of his laptop. 

"I signed a contract that said I'll take good care of you," Taekwoon said. "And that includes a balanced diet."

Jaehwan stared at him, quickly trying to recalibrate his thoughts. This was a strange apartment, not the shelter. The shelter was safe. Strange apartments weren't. But Taekwoon was a hybrid. His new owner was a hybrid. 

"Do you like steak?" Taekwoon prompted gently. Jaehwan realised he'd been gaping.

"Why aren't you eating?" Jaehwan asked, maybe a little too sharply. He didn't mean to sound suspicious.

Taekwoon pointed at a clock on the wall. It was well past eleven at night. 

"You were sleeping," Taekwoon said. He frowned. "I think."

"I was," Jaehwan said. With food in front of him, Jaehwan suddenly realised he was actually very hungry. He did his best to ignore Taekwoon watching him. Without the contacts, Taekwoon's eyes were sharply feline, and in the well lit kitchen his pupils were narrowed into diamonds. Taekwoon didn't seem to notice his discomfort, but Jaehwan did get a moment of reprieve when the cat went to fetch two mugs, absolutely silent as always. Jaehwan's was water, but Taekwoon's wasn't.

"What's that?" Jaehwan asked, pointing at Taekwoon's mug.

"Coffee?" Taekwoon tilted his mug slightly to show Jaehwan the creamy brown drink. 

"It's almost midnight!" Jaehwan said.

Taekwoon just shrugged and took a sip. He'd tucked his feet onto the chair again, his tail wrapped loosely about his legs. Jaehwan wished he'd stop staring. 

But the food was good. Jaehwan had even inhaled half of the vegetables before he remembered he didn't like vegetables, but it was too late and he had to finish them. Balanced diet indeed.

"We can shop for clothes tomorrow," Taekwoon said when Jaehwan was almost done. "And anything else you might need. You don't have to worry about cost—"

"But where do you get the money? Hybrids can't work," Jaehwan blurted out. At least not anywhere reputable, and not for anything more than pocket money. He'd already said too much. But again, like before, Taekwoon didn't seem offended. If anything, he seemed embarrassed.

"I hoped you wouldn't ask," Taekwoon mumbled into his coffee. 

"You're not mafia?" Jaehwan asked. Maybe he kidnapped people. Or sold drugs. Or whatever mafia did.

Taekwoon snorted. "The shelter would have found out," he said.

"Then where do you work?" Jaehwan frowned at him.

"I don't really go outside much," Taekwoon admitted. Jaehwan's confusion deepened and it showed on his face. Taekwoon sighed and looked down. After a moment, he stood up and leaned over the table. Jaehwan went rigid, but Taekwoon only placed the headphones over Jaehwan's head, adjusting and twisting the speakers for Jaehwan's ears. As soon as they were on, Taekwoon sat back down and hit a button on his laptop.

Jaehwan recognised the song. The music was gentle and it was a sad song. It was the ending theme for a recent drama by a fairly popular female singer, but Jaehwan couldn't place her name. He didn't understand why Taekwoon was making him listen to it until the song finished and he pulled off the headphones.

"I wrote that," Taekwoon said simply. 

"_You_?" Jaehwan squawked. "But you're a hybrid!"

"So are you," Taekwoon pointed out. His voice was several decibels softer than Jaehwan's and Jaehwan felt a little ashamed.

"No one needs to know," Taekwoon said. He tugged the headphones back to his side of the table and wound the cable between his fingers. "Please don't tell anyone."

"Who would I tell?" Jaehwan asked, genuinely confused.

Taekwoon didn't answer right away—or at all. All he did was look at Jaehwan's empty plate.

"Are you done? Do you want more?"

"Is there more?" Jaehwan's ears perked up.

A smile flitted across Taekwoon's face. "More spinach," he said very seriously. 

Jaehwan whined.

\---

Taekwoon was… strange. This was Jaehwan's assessment by the end of the second day. They hadn't gone out—Jaehwan had thrown a small fit even before stepping out the door but Taekwoon hadn't said a word and only asked Jaehwan if he liked coffee.

Jaehwan didn't, it turned out. Something about his canine senses, probably.

They'd watched TV for the rest of the day. Rather, Jaehwan had watched TV and Taekwoon had sat next to him with his headphones and worked on lyrics, but every time Jaehwan tried to peek Taekwoon slammed his notebook shut. They had chicken delivery for lunch and fish for dinner, and Jaehwan wondered how Taekwoon wasn't fat with the amount he ate. For once, Jaehwan kept that thought to himself.

The third day wasn't much different. It was quiet, too quiet. For the past however many years of his life, Jaehwan had either been surrounded by people screaming at him, or screaming children in general. Or he'd been the screaming child. Taekwoon didn't scream at Jaehwan or in general or...talk much. It was beginning to grate on Jaehwan because Jaehwan wanted to talk, but there was no one to talk to. Taekwoon was nice. Kind of aloof, but nice. He really didn't go outside much. He even had his groceries delivered.

On the fourth day, Jaehwan couldn't take it anymore.

"Let's go out," he declared over breakfast. 

Taekwoon was taken aback. "Are you sure?" he asked. He hadn't forgotten Jaehwan's screaming fit from a few days before. Jaehwan himself wasn't sure why he'd freaked out like that.

"I'm bored," Jaehwan said. If it was a little whiny, so be it.

"Oh," Taekwoon said softly. "Then let's go after lunch."

"Why not now?" Jaehwan asked.

Taekwoon bit at his lip as if he was thinking about it, but he still shook his head. "I need to do something."

Or that was what he said, but all Taekwoon did was stare intensely at the laptop, occasionally refreshing the screen, and not doing much at all.

"What are you doing?" Jaehwan peered over Taekwoon's shoulder. The cat jumped, nearly smacking Jaehwan in the chin.

"'m busy," Taekwoon mumbled. "Go watch TV."

"There's nothing good on right now," Jaehwan said. "What're you doing?"

"Busy," Taekwoon said again.

"What're you doing?" Jaehwan prodded.

"Go away," Taekwoon muttered, striking absentmindedly behind him.

His elbow caught Jaehwan in the chest and Jaehwan yelped, jumping backwards.

"Shit—" Taekwoon jumped up, the chair toppling. "Jaehwan, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."

Jaehwan cowered, whimpering.

"Jaehwan? I… Are you okay?"

He was okay. It didn't hurt. It was an accident. Jaehwan knew that. It still took effort to relax his stiff tail. He forced Taekwoon a cheeky smile. 

"Of course I'm okay," Jaehwan said, jumping to his feet. He couldn't quite manage an energetic tail wag—it was more of a pathetic flop—but Taekwoon seemed genuinely relieved. Taekwoon set the chair upright, looking sheepish.

"I'm ticketing," Taekwoon explained. He meant the laptop.

"You could've just said that in the first place!" Jaehwan said, circling around to the other side of the table. He blinked. "What does that mean?"

"I'm trying to buy tickets for a concert," Taekwoon said. "The good ones sell out quickly."

"It's that popular?" Jaehwan asked.

Taekwoon nodded firmly. He refreshed the page again.

"Can I go?" Jaehwan asked.

Taekwoon looked up suddenly. "Do you want to?" he asked. "I wasn't sure since…"

"Since I freaked out that day?" Jaehwan asked wryly.

Another nod.

"Were you gonna go alone?" Jaehwan asked.

Taekwoon shook his head. "Some friends," he said. "It's...easier."

"Easier? How?"

"To get through security," Taekwoon said. Jaehwan didn't get it, but Taekwoon seemed to be an old hand at this, and Jaehwan… well, Jaehwan had no life experience at all. 

"This is why we're waiting until lunch?" Jaehwan asked.

Yet another nod. Jaehwan sighed. Getting Taekwoon to talk seemed to be like pulling teeth. 

"Why don't you have a collar?" Jaehwan asked. It was a little blunt, but he'd been wondering for a while. Taekwoon glanced at Jaehwan and then sighed deeply, staring at the laptop screen.

"I have one," Taekwoon said.

"Why don't you wear it?"

"It's not comfortable," Taekwoon said. He'd said that the first day, Jaehwan remembered.

"But only shelter hybrids don't have collars. And strays."

"I said I have a collar," Taekwoon snapped. He immediately looked sorry. He sighed again. "I didn't like it and my owner didn't—"

"You have an owner?" Jaehwan knew he was yelling, but somehow, that was the last thing he expected to hear. Taekwoon looked extremely peeved.

"I used to," Taekwoon said.

"What happened to them?"

Taekwoon just shrugged, but something must've changed on the screen because his face lit up and he muttered something under his breath as he jabbed furiously at the keyboard. His tail wagged back and forth like a dog's—Jaehwan held back a laugh.

"I'm gonna go change," Jaehwan tossed out over his shoulder. He didn't even get a nod of acknowledgement.

\---

Jaehwan hadn't been out for some time. That was what they'd told Taekwoon at the shelter—or more accurately, what the shelter staff had told Taekwoon during the home visit. So he understood when Jaehwan had suddenly refused to step outside the door the first time but he was a bit more perplexed at Jaehwan asking to go to the concert with him. If Taekwoon were honest with himself, talking to Director Eunju that day had been one of the most terrifying occurrences in his life. And that was counting the first time he'd gone outside alone. He hadn't told her his… secret yet, or explained why he wanted to meet here and not at the shelter. They'd have to conduct a home visit eventually, he reasoned. 

To his surprise, the woman had just smiled.

"Actually your friend already contacted us so we could look into your details. Oh, don't look so surprised, it was Cha Hakyeon?" 

Of course it was Hakyeon. Taekwoon pouted in disgruntlement but felt secretly relieved as Hakyeon probably knew he'd be. Both grateful and terrified, Taekwoon took off his hat and his ears popped out and Eunju's smile grew more genuine. But as a result, they'd already done all the background checks and now all they needed was to grill Taekwoon thoroughly, make sure he was who he said he was (ears and tail and all) that his finances and abode were in order, and to give him very explicit instructions which included never yelling at Jaehwan, making sure he ate his vegetables (he hated vegetables), take him to the doctor at regular intervals, not to let him loose outside unsupervised (Taekwoon swallowed a gulp at this one and thought of himself but Eunju assured him this applied more to the young ones) and always keep his identification tag on (again, Taekwoon held back from scratching at his neck). Taekwoon had nodded very seriously and promised every single point and more. But it was the last one that'd made Taekwoon splutter.

"Do… 'do not initiate intimate or sexual behaviour'?" Taekwoon echoed.

"Well I'm not going to restrict what Jaehwan can or can't do but he's been terrified that it's what'll happen to him if he ever aged out—oh, that wasn't what you meant?"

Eunju took in Taekwoon's look of complete and utter shock and even worse, as Taekwoon sank down in his chair and buried his face against the table, began to laugh.

"I guess we didn't have to worry about that," she said, "yes, I think you will be a good fit for our Jaehwannie."

Taekwoon sighed and adjusted the bulky headphones a little as he stood against the wall in the semi-crowded mall. It wasn't very crowded at all—it was a weekday afternoon—but Taekwoon wasn't great at people. These weren't his actual headphones—in fact they were designed for humans and the bluetooth wasn't connected to anything, and they were a little uncomfortable for his actual ears. The whole purpose was for people not to bother him. It generally worked. Apparently he had a scary face to start with.

He'd let Jaehwan free and from the way he flitted from one clothing rack to another, no one would guess this was the first time he'd been really outside in almost two years. He'd taken to heart that Taekwoon'd said there was no need to consider cost—but that wasn't the problem. The problem was that there were _three_ paper shopping bags of clothes around Taekwoon's feet already, and they hadn't even been here for an hour. But Jaehwan was happy, his tail wagging incessantly. Taekwoon stood nearby enough so that it was clear Jaehwan wasn't here unattended, and so he could hand the clerks his card when Jaehwan decided he'd sufficiently raided their stocks. The sales ladies all cooed over Jaehwan, telling him how cute he was, how fluffy his tail was, what an adorable puppy—Jaehwan preened under the attention. Taekwoon let out a huff of laughter. 

After what he'd heard about Jaehwan and that first disastrous night, Taekwoon was relieved that Jaehwan was doing rather well.

"Are you tired?" Taekwoon asked as he took the _fourth_ shopping bag from the saleslady. He'd slipped off the headphones and now they hung around his neck.

Jaehwan shook his head. Taekwoon was very close to a sad, defeated sigh but he held it in for Jaehwan's sake. _He_ was tired and very much wanted to go home.

Taekwoon changed tracks. "Food?"

This got an excited yip. 

"The food court is…"

Taekwoon trailed off because it was clear Jaehwan's excitement hadn't been Taekwoon's offer of food, but a window display a few shops over. Taekwoon had no choice but to trudge after Jaehwan, the shiba's tail wagging a mile a minute. 

It was a video game store.

"Do you like it?" Taekwoon asked walking up behind Jaehwan. He'd plastered himself to the window and was staring inside and jumped when Taekwoon spoke.

"You scared me!" Jaehwan yelped.

Taekwoon raised an eyebrow. "I thought I smelled," he said. Jaehwan wrinkled his nose and turned away with exaggerated irritation. Taekwoon found it very cute.

"If you like it, we can get it," Taekwoon said. Jaehwan's head snapped around so fast it seemed impossible it didn't fly off his neck.

"But it's expensive!" Jaehwan gestured at the price tag on the console. It was the newest model so it wasn't even on sale, although they were advertising trade-in discounts. Taekwoon didn't have anything to trade in, and besides:

"Less than if we add up everything else from today," Taekwoon said, teasing. When Jaehwan started looking genuinely upset Taekwoon shook his head quickly. "I meant it when I said not to worry about the cost."

Jaehwan looked down, fingers fiddling at the hem of his shirt. Taekwoon wanted to pat him or stroke his hair, but wasn't sure how the shiba would feel about that. He also wasn't very good at speaking comforting words.

Taekwoon walked past Jaehwan and straight into the shop. A shop clerk came forward to help him and Taekwoon simply pointed at the console that came bundled with a game. He turned around and gestured for Jaehwan to come in as well. The dog had frozen outside. At Taekwoon's order, he slowly ventured in.

"Games?" he asked Jaehwan.

Jaehwan bit at his lip, suddenly nervous.

Taekwoon glanced around him. He didn't know very much about games and knew even less about what games Jaehwan liked, but Taekwoon _could_ afford it so he just picked the top three bestsellers and had them all rung up. 

"Carry this one," Taekwoon said, gesturing at the fancy digital bundle. "My hands are full."

"But what if I drop it?" Jaehwan asked in a hushed voice as he stared.

"Your owner bought the best warranty," the shop clerk said. Even if Jaehwan was speaking quietly, he had the sort of voice that was easy to hear. The clerk held out the bag to Jaehwan with both hands until Jaehwan tentatively took it.

"Is it heavy?" Taekwoon asked. "We can trade."

"I'm fine!" Jaehwan said.

Taekwoon shared a look with the shop clerk who smiled and waved.

"We can look around more," Taekwoon said as Jaehwan carefully carried his one bag. "Or we could go home."

"Home," Jaehwan quickly decided. Taekwoon couldn't hide his smile of relief.

"The parking lot's this way."

\---

Jaehwan could get _very_ noisy. Taekwoon had been warned about it, but that warning hadn't accounted for video games. 

"Where did you even learn that word?" Taekwoon muttered to himself under his breath as Jaehwan let out a slew of particularly creative curses because he'd been defeated by a boss—or something like that. That was the most probable one. Unless he was playing the online fighting game in which case it might've been his teammates' poor performance. Jaehwan picked up on things frighteningly fast.

Was Taekwoon supposed to… teach Jaehwan those were bad words and he shouldn't say bad words? Taekwoon bit at the inside of his cheek. He was perched at the kitchen table which, until now, had been his de facto workspace—he was beginning to think he should set up camp in his bedroom. From here he could watch Jaehwan play and he couldn't deny that Jaehwan's infinite overreactions weren't cute. Taekwoon's eardrums, on the other hand, were in strong disagreement. He thought carefully over the contract he signed but nothing seemed close to applicable unless 'abuse and neglect' included neglecting Jaehwan's… moral upbringing.

Well Jaehwan was an adult. He could swear if he wanted. Humans thought all hybrids were juvenile and helpless no matter their age but Taekwoon, being 'juvenile', felt very, very strongly that it was bullshit. An old, dried, rotten cake of bullshit. 

But Taekwoon really did have work to do, and even with his high-end noise cancelling specialty headphones, he wasn't getting any done here.

"I'll be in my room," Taekwoon said. He wasn't sure if Jaehwan heard but his apartment wasn't _that_ big. Other than his room and Jaehwan's room there was only another guest bedroom that was furnished by a single bed. If Jaehwan needed to find him, he knew where Taekwoon's room was.

Jaehwan glanced over his shoulder to make sure Taekwoon had disappeared before he let out a small breath and slouched in his seat. There was something unnerving about having those sharp eyes on him and Jaehwan was grateful for the games. It gave him something he could sink hours into and not have to talk to or otherwise interact with his very non-human owner. Taekwoon seemed content to just let him do as he pleased, other than reminding him to shower and sleep and feeding Jaehwan delicious food. Even the vegetables weren't too bad. 

As promised, Eunju had shown up with some high-school volunteer over the weekend. It was almost funny watching Taekwoon nervously show them around and offer them drinks. At one point Taekwoon nearly tugged the beanie off his head—Eunju had to know that Taekwoon wasn't human, but Jaehwan doubted the kid knew. Jaehwan, for his part, curled up on the couch and waited for them to leave so he could go back to clearing the map on Hard. His tail needed some grooming anyway. Taekwoon was a good owner by every standard, but something was off. Like Taekwoon felt as weird about interacting with Jaehwan as Jaehwan did with him. Wasn't Jaehwan cute enough to play with?

Jaehwan put the controller down and stood to stretch. It was almost dinner when he looked at the clock, but Taekwoon didn't seem to be coming out soon. Maybe they were getting delivery today—Taekwoon liked to cook though.

His owner had said something about being in his room… Jaehwan had never been there, but it was just next to Jaehwan's. The door was usually closed and today was no different. Jaehwan stopped just in front of it, toes curling to some invisible line. Maybe… Taekwoon didn't want to be disturbed? He'd been scolded before for barging into rooms without knocking. At the shelter and elsewhere. But it was almost dinner and Jaehwan was hungry. Steeling his nerves, Jaehwan knocked—too timidly. It barely made a sound. Jaehwan knocked again and it was loud, but there was no response. Jaehwan frowned. He was sure Taekwoon was in there—he would've noticed if his owner had gone out since he would've passed by the living room. Jaehwan pressed his ear against the door and he could hear movement. Maybe Taekwoon hadn't heard him? Oh, that was right—he probably had his headphones on. Urged on by his grumbling tummy, Jaehwan knocked once more and then pushed open the unlocked door.

It wasn't that much bigger than Jaehwan's room. If anything, it might've been smaller, but it was hard to tell with how much stuff there was. Jaehwan took a careful step in and peered around. The main difference was that Taekwoon's room had an attached bathroom. In addition to his bed and dresser there was also a massive desk, and then tucked into the corner was a giant beanbag cushion. Taekwoon was sitting at the desk with his back to Jaehwan, headphones on as Jaehwan had guessed. There was a notebook beside his laptop that he periodically scribbled in. Lyrics?

"Taekwoon?" Jaehwan called out. "I'm hungry."

When the cat didn't turn, Jaehwan sighed and walked forward. He kept a careful distance as he tapped Taekwoon on the shoulder.

Taekwoon made a high pitched squeak and wrenched off his headphones. His tail bristled and his eyes opened wide—Jaehwan laughed. Giggled.

Taekwoon grimaced and ducked his head. His cheeks were definitely pink. "You scared me," he mumbled.

"I'm hungry," Jaehwan repeated. He pouted. "Feed me."

"What time is it?" Taekwoon asked, reaching blindly for his phone. 

"Dinner time," Jaehwan whined. "Feed me."

"Alright, alright," Taekwoon said. He stood up and ruffled Jaehwan's hair, scratching behind his ears. Jaehwan whined in happiness and tipped his head back so Taekwoon's fingers were in an even better spot. 

"More," Jaehwan demanded when Taekwoon stopped. 

Taekwoon looked at him, kind of stunned. 

"I said _more_," Jaehwan said. He grabbed Taekwoon's hand when the cat didn't respond and put it on his own head. "Again."

It was Taekwoon's turn to burst into laughter and his cheeks scrunched all the way up. "Like this?" he asked, scratching perfectly behind Jaehwan's ears. Jaehwan wagged his tail happily. It felt _so_ good. Jaehwan clutched at Taekwoon's wrist and refused to let him stop, pushing his head against Taekwoon's head.

"I thought you were hungry," Taekwoon said. He sounded amused. Jaehwan's stomach rumbled audibly at the reminder of food and he whined. 

"But it feels good," Jaehwan whined. He let go Taekwoon's hand go but kept a light hold on Taekwoon's wrist as Taekwoon led them out.

"Chicken?" Taekwoon finally extricated himself from Jaehwan so he could pull up the contacts list on his phone.

"Balanced diet," Jaehwan said teasingly and got a light smack on the back of his head for his efforts.

In the next moment, he saw Taekwoon freeze, that same horrified look on his face from a few days ago. They'd told Taekwoon about his history, Jaehwan remembered. Eunju had even made a point of asking him that day—_he doesn't hit you, right?_ Jaehwan grimaced to himself as a few things clicked into place and nearly bowled Taekwoon over in his eagerness for cuddles. It'd been ages since he'd had cuddles.

"Pat me," Jaehwan said. He was tall enough that he could stick his head in Taekwoon's face, his ears perked up and twitching. As soon as Taekwoon reached up, Jaehwan wrapped his arms around Taekwoon and made happy sounds into Taekwoon's broad chest. Only when Taekwoon seemed as relaxed as Jaehwan could make him did Jaehwan let go—although he still wanted more head pats.

"I'm not a baby or glass," Jaehwan said, pouting. "But if you want to make it up to me, we're getting chicken for a week."

Taekwoon laughed at that and gently patted Jaehwan's cheek. "You'll get tired of it," he said.

"I _won't_," Jaehwan whined, pouting deeper.

Taekwoon sighed deeply and waved Jaehwan aside so he could call in delivery from their favourite place.

Their? Jaehwan pulled up short at that thought. When had it become his own favourite place? Until a week ago, Jaehwan hadn't ever ordered chicken from there. His head hurt thinking about it so he flopped down on the couch instead and swatted at his own tail. It took him all of half a minute to get bored with that but Taekwoon was making _another_ call. As soon as Taekwoon came back though, Jaehwan yanked him down onto the couch with more strength than Taekwoon expected.

"You give good scratches," Jaehwan said. He clambered directly onto Taekwoon's lap even though he was far too big for it. 

"Do I?" Taekwoon asked. Jaehwan buried his face against Taekwoon's shoulder and wiggled his butt until Taekwoon finally got the hint and started scratching behind his ears again, and then down his scalp and rubbing along his jaw. A nice warm feeling enveloped Jaehwan. Without noticing, his arms were wrapped around Taekwoon again, and Taekwoon was unconsciously holding Jaehwan to his chest as well. It was very warm. 

Jaehwan couldn't remember the last time he'd felt like this—and he didn't really want to try. 

He dozed off like that, half curled on Taekwoon's lap and clinging to his new owner like his life depended on it. He didn't even wake up at the doorbell—only when Taekwoon carefully pushed Jaehwan off onto the couch. Jaehwan whined and grabbed at Taekwoon's pants, more to be a petulant child than because he didn't want Taekwoon to go. Even through the door, Jaehwan could start to smell the chicken. Shiba senses.

Jaehwan rolled languidly onto the floor and sat up, watching as Taekwoon met the delivery person. It seemed to be taking a long time. 

"I want to eat," Jaehwan complained as soon as the door closed, blinking the sleep out of his eyes. 

"Wash your hands," Taekwoon admonished. 

Jaehwan grumbled a little but went to wash his hands in the bathroom, the short walk waking him up a little. When he came back, Taekwoon had spread out the food in front of the TV and was putting on an old anime rerun. The tip of Taekwoon's tail was swishing about lazily—without thinking, Jaehwan dived forward to grab it. 

Taekwoon just sighed and twitched his tail out of the way leaving Jaehwan with only hard ground.

"Mean," Jaehwan grumbled.

They were about halfway through when Taekwoon spoke up.

"We're going out tomorrow," Taekwoon said.

Jaehwan tore a piece off the drumstick he was holding and turned to Taekwoon.

"For what?" Jaehwan asked.

"The concert," Taekwoon said.

Jaehwan's eyes widened as he recalled that morning. "Concert," he repeated.

A smile crept onto Taekwoon's face as the cat pointed at Jaehwan's tail, which was thumping against the floor. "Excited?"

"I've never been to a concert," Jaehwan admitted. He tried to stop his tail from wagging but it was a little like stopping the tide at this point.

"There will be a lot of people," Taekwoon said—like it might bother Jaehwan.

"That's fine," Jaehwan said. Like most things, Jaehwan had seen concerts—or more accurately, he'd watched dramas where the characters went to concerts, so he knew that there'd be a lot of people. What he didn't know was _whose_ concert they were going to.

"Ah, it's a singer me and… a friend both like," Taekwoon said, equal parts sheepish for not having told Jaehwan and amused that Jaehwan hadn't thought to ask until now.

"Same friend we're going with?" Jaehwan asked. He tossed out the bone he'd gnawed clean and reached for another piece of chicken. 

"One of them," Taekwoon said. 

"We're going with two people? Two friends?" Jaehwan asked. _I didn't know you had friends_. Jaehwan had to bite back that snide remark. Just because he'd never seen Taekwoon go out or have anyone visit didn't mean that he didn't have friends. Jaehwan just hadn't met them yet. 

To his surprise, Taekwoon only shrugged and a look crossed his face that Jaehwan took a few moments to decipher as annoyance.

"What time is it?" Jaehwan asked. 

"Seven," Taekwoon said. He wiped his fingers with the wet napkin, even though there were still several wings left. "We're leaving earlier. To meet up with them."

"What singer? Do I know them?" Jaehwan wasn't full yet, so if Taekwoon was done, that meant more chicken for him.

"Do you know many singers?" Taekwoon asked, his eyebrows raised in amusement.

"Of course!" Jaehwan said hotly, before he understood that Taekwoon meant _know_ know and was teasing him. Of course Taekwoon _knew_ singers if he wrote songs. Jaehwan pouted. 

"Did you write their songs?" Jaehwan was firing off questions but Taekwoon hadn't told him to stop yet. 

Taekwoon shook his head, a faint blush rising to his cheeks. "I'm not that good," he said, his voice suddenly dropping.

"But I really like your songs," Jaehwan said—and that was true, he'd listened to a bunch more since he'd come to live with Taekwoon, and found out that LEO had written quite a few songs that Jaehwan knew. 

This just made Taekwoon blush harder and drop his head. Interesting. 

"Get ready to leave at four," Taekwoon mumbled, scrambling to his feet. "I'll clean up later."

"I can do it," Jaehwan said. He shrugged when Taekwoon pivoted and stared at him, Jaehwan matching his stare. "Didn't you have work? I know where all your stuff is now."

"I don't mind," Taekwoon said.

"Go make money to buy more chicken," Jaehwan said, making shooing motions with his sauce covered hands. The makings of a smile grew on Taekwoon's face before bursting into laughter.

Jaehwan beamed back—he hoped things would start to feel less weird.

\---

To Taekwoon, being human was like a disguise, and not always a very good one. It was also second nature by now and it helped that he'd always liked large sweaters with long sleeves. Maybe the beanie was a little strange in summer, but it was more comfortable than a snapback. He'd played around with other hats for a while but they made him look like "either a dick, or plain dumb," as his very supportive housemate had told him. 

Jaehwan, for his part, was glad Taekwoon wasn't wearing that cloying cologne he'd had the first time they'd met. It made the elevator and car ride more comfortable. Jaehwan had spent almost an hour playing with the new clothes Taekwoon had bought for him before deciding on an outfit he was happy with. In the end he'd given in and raided Taekwoon's closet—with permission—and stolen one of his loose t-shirts and tugged it over a blouse. Jaehwan thought he looked rather dapper in a casual sort of way. 

This time, Jaehwan hopped right into the front seat and began playing with the radio. 

"I wanna find your songs," Jaehwan said. Mostly because it seemed to embarrass Taekwoon which endlessly delighted Jaehwan. Taekwoon sighed deeply, but he was driving and had to focus on the road.

"The CD slot," Taekwoon said, almost mumbled. Jaehwan gleefully changed it to the CD and hit play.

"All your songs are sad," Jaehwan commented, halfway through the first one. Taekwoon had played it for him before. "Why?"

"I'm good at them," Taekwoon said simply. 

"But why not other things? How do you know you're not good at those?"

Taekwoon just looked at him with a weird expression that was maybe a laugh? Or annoyed? Sometimes (often) Taekwoon's expressions didn't make sense to Jaehwan. 

Wherever they were going, it seemed far. The last time they'd gone out was to the mall, and it'd been so close that Jaehwan'd barely had time to get used to the car—that'd been good, because the car had _smelled_ again. Taekwoon's pretend-human smell still lingered, but it wasn't too bad. They drove through an area entirely unfamiliar to Jaehwan and pulled onto the highway.

"How far is it?" Jaehwan stared out the window in awe.

"Almost there," Taekwoon said.

"How far is 'almost'?"

That same look from Taekwoon except more intense—the sunlight sharpened Taekwoon's eyes. 

"You're not wearing contacts," Jaehwan pointed out. Did Taekwoon forget?

A shrug. "I know," Taekwoon said.

Jaehwan sighed heavily. He'd expected Taekwoon to be more excited, but he'd been the same Taekwoon all day, and even now. Taekwoon seemed a little jumpier than usual but that was it. The music made it alright. Jaehwan didn't like silence, and he liked listening to music.

The thought that they were going to a concert where they would hear someone sing the songs right in front of them slammed into Jaehwan all of a sudden.

"You still haven't told me who the concert is!" Jaehwan realised.

"I didn't?" Taekwoon turned and blinked slowly at Jaehwan. "It's Park Hyoshin."

Jaehwan knew him. In fact, he sang almost the exact type of song that Jaehwan could imagine Taekwoon writing. Maybe that was Taekwoon's dream? Jaehwan took a moment to absorb this. 

It turned out when Taekwoon had said 'almost there', he'd actually meant 'almost' because they were already turning off the highway.

"Are we there?" Jaehwan asked—knowing _almost_ exactly what Taekwoon was going to say.

"Almost," Taekwoon said. Jaehwan laughed and Taekwoon gave him that look. His owner could be very predictable.

Jaehwan's tail wagged and thumped against the side of the seat as he twisted so he could stare out of the window. It looked a lot older than their neighbourhood and when Taekwoon finally pulled the car to a stop, it was in front of a rather impressive house.

"_That's_ where your friend lives?" Jaehwan pointed.

"We're here," Taekwoon said, as if he hadn't heard Jaehwan at all. That was all Taekwoon said before he got out of the car. Jaehwan pouted but followed him, nearly hitting his head against the door frame in his rush. His ears still bumped against it and he whined in irritation.

Taekwoon was about to ring the doorbell when it flew open and a human bowled forward and enveloped Taekwoon in the biggest hug Jaehwan had ever seen. Taekwoon tolerated it for a few milliseconds before he pushed the stranger off.

"Taekwoonie! I've missed you!" the human said. He turned to Jaehwan and Jaehwan was momentarily stunned at how bright the human's smile was. "And you must be Jaehwan."

Jaehwan nodded, unconsciously hiding behind Taekwoon. He liked hugs, but that had looked... intense. The human exuded warmth and his eyes were tilted in a way that was rather handsome. His skin was more tan than Taekwoon's—but Taekwoon was the shade of a vampire. He was dressed very smartly too—other than the ugly purple plastic slippers on his feet. 

"Come in, come in," the human said. "Hongbin's sulking—"

"I am not!" A loud voice echoed down the hallway.

The human raised his eyebrows.

"What did you do this time Hakyeon?" Taekwoon sounded exasperated as he was ushered in. Jaehwan trailed in after him, much more cautiously.

Jaehwan filed the name away and looked around. He sniffed at the air—there was definitely another hybrid here. 

"I didn't do anything," Hakyeon complained. He yanked Taekwoon's hat off and began to vigorously rub behind his ears. Jaehwan watched in amazement when Taekwoon melted against Hakyeon, purring loudly. This was the first time he'd seen Taekwoon act so… so much like a hybrid.

Hakyeon laughed, sharing a knowing smile with Jaehwan. Jaehwan smiled back awkwardly, not entirely understanding.

"Come into the living room," Hakyeon said, leading them out of the entryway. "Jaehwan, treat this like your own home and make yourself comfortable. We don't have to go yet—"

"What if we run into traffic, we can't be _late_!"

They rounded the corner to see someone—who had to be Hongbin—sitting on the couch furiously jamming the controls of a handheld game system. He was also the source of the mystery smell. One of his rabbit ears was turned right towards them while his tiny tail was wagging back and forth—rather comically. Rabbit tails were too short to wag. He barely spared a glance their way although he was clearly very alert to their presence. Jaehwan had always thought rabbits were too jumpy. 

"It's only ten minutes away," Hakyeon said. He smiled at Jaehwan, exasperated and apologetic all at once. 

"We left early in case of traffic," Taekwoon said.

"Look, even the _kitty_ agrees," Hongbin snapped.

Jaehwan watched, frozen, as Taekwoon leapt at Hongbin, landing just short of bowling him over. Taekwoon did get a handful of Hongbin's ear; the rabbit hadn't jumped to his feet fast enough. Hakyeon just sighed and pulled Taekwoon's tail.

"Be good, we have guests," Hakyeon said. Taekwoon yanked himself free, but didn't chase after Hongbin.

"Taekwoon is not a guest, he's an _unwelcome_ intrusion," Hongbin said, scowling at them. 

"He's not usually like this," Hakyeon said to Jaehwan. "Although he's always liked provoking Taekwoon."

"He's a brat," Taekwoon muttered under his breath. Hakyeon tweaked his tail and Taekwoon jumped and whined, turning to Hakyeon with a piteous look. Since Jaehwan was standing behind Hakyeon, this also meant that Taekwoon saw _Jaehwan_. Jaehwan had heard of lightbulbs turning on before—this was less like a lightbulb being turned off, and more like a lightbulb being snuffed out and shattered into pieces. Jaehwan felt a little like withering under that empty stare.

It was easier to look past Taekwoon to Hongbin. The rabbit had climbed back onto the couch, depositing himself against the cushions like he lived there. He scooped up his discarded game and glanced their way. Jaehwan gave him a small wave.

"Hi, I'm Jaehwan," he said. He skirted around Hakyeon and Taekwoon to join Hongbin on the couch. "What're you playing?"

"Jaehwan likes video games," Taekwoon said to Hakyeon. Now that Jaehwan's attention was elsewhere and so was Hongbin's, Taekwoon let Hakyeon scratch behind his ears. It felt _really_ good and a low purr rumbled softly through him. Jaehwan seemed to be getting along with Hongbin, or at least the rabbit hadn't pitched a fit. But Jaehwan had a soft personality that could get through anyone's prickly exterior, and that included even a stressed Hongbin.

"I feel bad I couldn't visit earlier," Hakyeon said. He ran his fingers through Taekwoon's hair and massaged his scalp. Taekwoon made a small sound of disagreement—he didn't want to shake his head, because Hakyeon's fingers were wonderful. 

"So you bought Jaehwan video games," Hakyeon said. "Was that your idea or his?"

"He saw it at the mall," Taekwoon said. 

Hongbin was growing more animated as he showed Jaehwan the game. It was nice to see—for both of them. 

"You're both doing well? Did you run into any trouble at the shelter? Do you need anything?" Hakyeon asked.

Taekwoon sighed and slumped. "I can take care of myself," he grumbled. "_And_ Jaehwan."

"I know, or I wouldn't have told the shelter you could," Hakyeon said. He gave Taekwoon one more ear scratch before he extricated himself to go fuss over Jaehwan instead. Jaehwan took easily to Hakyeon—_everyone_ took easily to Hakyeon. And Hongbin had been playing a game. 

Taekwoon's tail swished back and forth behind him as he turned sharply to get water from the kitchen. He'd moved out a year ago but not much had changed, including where the mugs were. His own favourite mug was gone from the cupboards because he'd taken it with him when he moved, but he'd left his second favourite mug on the top shelf for this very reason. Taekwoon was tall, but he still had to really reach because it'd been pushed to the back. An arm shot past him and Taekwoon squeaked, falling backwards and bumping into a solid chest. 

"_Hongbin_," Taekwoon hissed. 

"Welcome home," Hongbin said dryly. He handed Taekwoon the mug. Taekwoon snatched it and cradled it to his chest. "There's pepsi in the fridge."

"Fanta?" Taekwoon asked.

"Hakyeon hasn't gotten groceries in a week," Hongbin grumbled. "We're out."

"You should order them yourself," Taekwoon said. He tugged the fridge door open and grabbed the soft drink.

"He doesn't trust me with his credit card," Hongbin said, the second part an eerily accurate imitation of Hakyeon's huffy scolding. Taekwoon laughed, shaking a little as he poured liquid sugar into his mug. 

"That's why you get your own," Taekwoon said smugly.

"_Technically_ 'yours' is Hakyeon's," Hongbin pointed out. "It just has your name on it."

"That doesn't make a difference, I still pay for it," Taekwoon said. He proffered the rest of the bottle to Hongbin and Hongbin took it, snagging a mug from the cupboard for himself.

"Just because I got a few things from a sale _once_—"

"You bought twenty computer games," Taekwoon said.

"Eighteen! And I played them all!" Hongbin protested. He sniffed, his nose twitching. "You got a pet and now you're even more stuck up. At least you're not covered in that disgusting smell."

Taekwoon hissed through his teeth and growled low in his throat. Swiping at Hongbin would likely end with two broken mugs, sticky soda everywhere, and a very angry Hakyeon. And an even more perplexed Jaehwan. Taekwoon sucked in a deep breath and held it in but he couldn't un-puff his tail. 

"I think it's a nice smell," Taekwoon said petulantly.

Hongbin side-eyed him as he tipped back his mug. "What does your pet think?" Hongbin asked.

"I don't know," Taekwoon said—despite knowing exactly what Jaehwan thought. 

Hongbin snorted into his drink which explained exactly how much he believed that. "You didn't do too bad for yourself. Hakyeon's absolutely beside himself with how cute 'Jaehwannie' is. So? Have you fucked yet?"

Taekwoon spat out his drink and spluttered. "I'm not—I'm not _you_," he hissed through clenched teeth.

"No wonder you're so tense," Hongbin said.

"_I'm not you_," Taekwoon repeated. He glanced out the kitchen door and prayed that neither Jaehwan or Hakyeon had heard. Jaehwan would hate him and Hakyeon would be so pissed. Taekwoon could see it now.

"I can't help being who I am," Hongbin said easily, although his ears tipped back in annoyance. A moment later, a diabolical look came into his eyes.

Taekwoon raised his eyebrows and put down his cup.

"It's the whole pet-owner thing getting in the way," Hongbin said, corner of his lips twitching upwards. "Guess who doesn't have that problem. Those lips of his—"

"Keep your bunny dick in your pants," Taekwoon growled, fingers tightening into fists. It was good he wasn't holding his cup anymore or he'd be throwing it right at Hongbin's goddamn smirk. 

"Or you'll do it for me?" Hongbin asked. He laughed. "Once for old time's sake?"

"I don't hump everything that moves," Taekwoon bit out, blood rising to his cheeks. Hongbin laughed again and stepped closer, putting his drink down as an afterthought. 

"I'm more discerning than that," Hongbin said, but then his lips curled into a pointed smile at Taekwoon. "Although sometimes I have to make do."

Taekwoon tried very hard not to be offended as he scrambled for a witty response. Hard, though, when Hongbin's fingers were in his hair and his lips a breath's space from Taekwoon's. Hongbin _was_ handsome, even pretty, and it was difficult not to react with those intensely warm eyes fixed on him. Taekwoon's lips parted and he breathed out, breath shuddering and eyes closing when Hongbin's fingers worked that sensitive part behind his ears. Hongbin kissed him the way he always had, sharp and greedy, leaving Taekwoon filled with _want_.

He was breathless when Hongbin took a step back, smug smile firmly in place. Taekwoon wiped at his mouth with the back of his hand—and of course it came off wet. 

"But seriously," Hongbin said, "you need to get laid."

"Weren't you just sulking over being late?" Taekwoon asked, putting extra emphasis on 'sulking', getting the desired effect of Hongbin's indignation, the rabbit's ears flaring backwards. It was Taekwoon's turn to be smug.

"I'm not sulking," Hongbin ground out, eyes narrowing. He crossed his arms over his chest.

Taekwoon gave Hongbin a slow once-over. "You're not dressed."

"What do you—" Hongbin looked down and swore, having apparently forgotten he was still wearing shorts. He glared at Taekwoon like it was somehow his fault and bolted out of the kitchen. Taekwoon snorted when Hakyeon yelled after Hongbin to slow down.

"He's going to get dressed," Taekwoon said, walking back into the living room, cup in hand.

Hakyeon clicked his tongue. "And he said we should leave early."

"You could've told him to get dressed," Taekwoon said. He looked around, feeling something was conspicuously missing. "Where's Jaehwan?"

"Washroom," Hakyeon said. He waved Taekwoon down to sit next to him, like Taekwoon was planning on anxiously following Jaehwan to the washroom to look for him. When Taekwoon didn't sit down fast enough, Hakyeon reached over and hauled Taekwoon down by his tail.

Taekwoon yelped and whined, giving Hakyeon a wounded look. "You're making me look bad in front of him," Taekwoon said. He held his tail protectively out of Hakyeon's way with his free hand and sat down. 

"You're doing that yourself," Hakyeon said. Taekwoon could see where Hongbin's smugness came from.

"We should leave soon," Taekwoon said. 

"You're just as bad as Hongbin," Hakyeon said with a laugh.

"I heard that!" Hongbin's voice echoed down the hall, through the closed door of his room. Taekwoon winced at the volume.

"I forget how sensitive his hearing is," Hakyeon said thoughtfully. "It was much easier to talk behind your back."

Taekwoon hissed, grumbling at Hakyeon. 

He did wonder where Jaehwan was, and why he was taking so long. Hakyeon had also begun absentmindedly stroking Taekwoon's hair, and shivers of relaxation ran down Taekwoon's spine. It'd been so long since he'd been pet like this and moments like this made him wonder why he'd moved out. But Taekwoon had brought it up and Hakyeon supported and encouraged it and when Hakyeon supported and encouraged something, he did it very enthusiastically. Taekwoon's room was still here, even though Hongbin kept threatening to turn it into either a storage room or a gaming room, depending on the day and his mood and the phase of the moon. Hakyeon had also supported—after subtly suggesting—Taekwoon adopting another hybrid. _I don't know if I can raise them well_, Taekwoon had said, to which Hakyeon pointed out that not all adoptable hybrids were baby puppies or kittens. 

And so, Jaehwan.

Taekwoon still didn't know if he was doing a good job. 

"I wonder what they're talking about," Hakyeon said, breaking through Taekwoon's daydreams. "It must be nice to have your hearing."

Taekwoon blinked slowly at Hakyeon, descrambling his words, a little distracted by the half-audible conversation coming down the hall. Hakyeon put a very firm hand on Taekwoon's thigh before Taekwoon could tear down the hall yelling bloody murder that Hongbin had better not be corrupting Jaehwan—

"They'll be fine," Hakyeon said, and then smiled at Taekwoon. "But let's go see what they're doing."

\---

Of all times for the package to arrive, it was a day where Taekwoon was out and Jaehwan had to sign for the package. Jaehwan had been here for three weeks and a lot had happened in those three weeks.

For one, Jaehwan had never had a package addressed to _him_ before. Well, it said "Taekwoon and Jaehwan" and it was from Hongbin, which made Jaehwan extremely curious about what was in it. They'd talked a few times since the concert and Jaehwan was thinking of asking Taekwoon for his own computer so he could play games together with Hongbin. Jaehwan wracked his memory for any hint of what it could be, but the last time he'd called Hongbin all they'd talked about was games. 

Jaehwan carried the box inside and jumped onto the couch, holding it gingerly on his lap. The address was hand written neatly and clearly with a blue pen. It was strange to see his own name on it. It was a medium sized box and when Jaehwan shook it, something solid—another box?—rattled inside. 

He wanted to open it, but reason told him to wait.

If Taekwoon had been human, if Jaehwan's owner was human, he'd definitely wait. He probably would've hesitated to even open the door. But in these three weeks, Jaehwan's understanding of the world and his place in it had begun to shift.

Especially since the concert. Not because of the concert itself—Jaehwan had enjoyed it immensely despite not being half as transfixed as Taekwoon and Hongbin had been—but because Taekwoon was outside without his usual hat or his cologne. His tail was still hidden underneath his usual oversized sweater, but he'd been wearing a _collar_.

"He's found it uncomfortable since he was a kitten," Hakyeon explained on the walk from the car to the venue. Taekwoon and Hongbin were walking in front of them and good naturedly bickering. Jaehwan had been staring a little too obviously at Taekwoon's neck. 

"Kitten?" Jaehwan echoed. Hakyeon didn't look that old.

"Mmhmm. He was the family pet—spoiled thing—and my parents and older siblings all gave him whatever he wanted. Legally he's registered to me, that's the address on the tag, but he's always wanted to try living alone."

"And you just _let_ him?" Jaehwan might've spoken too loudly because both Taekwoon and Hongbin turned back to look at him and he gulped. They didn't seem to care, because Hongbin immediately said something very sarcastic to Taekwoon and Taekwoon immediately bristled.

"I don't know if you've noticed, but he can be very stubborn," Hakyeon said dryly.

Jaehwan stared because Taekwoon was the _opposite_ of stubborn and gave in to whatever Jaehwan wanted, except the vegetables. 

"I was worried at first because he insisted on paying for everything himself since he had a good income, but it seems to have worked out. Oh, he did eventually let me buy his apartment for him!" Hakyeon seemed extremely pleased about that.

"You're loaded," Jaehwan said, staring at him. "_You_ aren't… mafia, are you?"

Hakyeon burst out laughing. "Oh! That's what you asked Taekwoon too! No, although that would be more exciting."

Jaehwan coloured.

"I'm a writer. Not for books—TV shows, things like that."

"How's that not exciting?" Jaehwan blurted out.

"It is rather fun," Hakyeon said. "And you get to meet all sorts of people in this line of work. It's how Taekwoon started too before he became more well known. But very few people know he's a cute kitten." Jaehwan had to bite his lip to keep from laughing at someone describing his owner as a 'cute kitten'. He understood handsome, but cute? 

But Jaehwan got it. He suddenly remembered Taekwoon on that first night, his owner saying in a very small voice that "no one needs to know," and "please don't tell anyone." Because Taekwoon was a hybrid. Like Jaehwan. Not exactly like Jaehwan because Taekwoon was a cat and Jaehwan was a cute Shiba puppy but, like Jaehwan. 

Jaehwan whined to himself, bouncing in absentminded agitation as he stared at the box. He really wanted to know what was in it. It had his name on it, it was _for_ him. But it also had Taekwoon's name on it. Jaehwan pouted at the box like it'd give in to his cuteness and reveal its contents. 

"Hurry up," Jaehwan muttered. He looked at the clock. Taekwoon had said he'd be gone 'for a few hours' but that could mean two hours or ten hours, and two hours had already passed. But there was someone else who knew what was in it. The box slid off his lap and onto the couch when Jaehwan bounded to his feet and to the phone, snatching the handset from the receiver. He hummed to himself, exceptionally pleased as he dialed a familiar number.

"Hello?" Hongbin picked up the phone at the other end.

"Hongbinnie! It's Jaehwan," Jaehwan said.

"I can tell," Hongbin said gingerly, his voice muffled and quiet. Jaehwan could imagine Hongbin holding the receiver away from his ears; Jaehwan grinned guiltily.

"So a package came," Jaehwan began slowly. He could hear background fighting noises and guessed that Hongbin was playing something. The fighting sounds stopped and it became an even background OST—he must've paused the game.

"Taekwoon's groceries?"

"No! _Your_ package." Jaehwan's cheeks puffed out when he pouted. 

"A package for me ended up with you?" Hongbin asked. 

Jaehwan growled because he could tell Hongbin was laughing at him from the other end of the line. 

"The package you sent! For me!"

"Ahh, the one for you and Taekwoon," Hongbin said, as if he'd just understood. "Have you opened it yet?"

"No," Jaehwan said sulkily. "Tell me what's in it."

Hongbin laughed. "Just open it," he said.

"Taekwoon's not back yet," Jaehwan said.

"Tsch. Who cares about him," Hongbin said. Jaehwan could hear Hongbin rolling his eyes through the phone. 

"It's for _him_ too," Jaehwan whined. "Just tell me what's in it."

"If you want to know that badly just open it," Hongbin said.

Jaehwan looked back at the mystery package on the couch and frowned. "But Taekwoon's not home," he said again.

"I always knew dogs were dumb," Hongbin muttered under his breath. 

"I heard that!" Jaehwan shrieked into the phone - somewhere across the city, Hongbin was already holding the receiver at arms length to protect his ears. 

"Well either you open it and find out or wait for the dumb cat to come home and find out but I'm not telling and I'm in the middle of a game. Don't call me back unless it's to thank me for being a considerate person. Especially Taekwoon! I'm doing this for him. Bye!"

Jahewan stared at the quietly beeping receiver as if it'd personally offended him.

So much for his brilliant idea.

Sadly, Jaehwan put the receiver back and looked at the package as if he could see through the box with x-ray vision. They should start growing flowers, the kinds with lots of petals, so every time Jaehwan had a tough decision he could sit there and pluck them off to make the choice for him. 

The hour it took for Taekwoon to came home was the longest ten hours of Jaehwan's life, that he spent scrolling through daytime TV and kids cartoons, lying on his stomach on the floor. At some point he fell asleep but his twitching ears were still alert enough to bring him wide awake the moment Taekwoon got to the door. 

"About time!" Jaehwan yelled.

The door opened a crack and Taekwoon's alarmed expression appeared. 

"What took you so long?" Jaehwan asked.

"Something happened?" Taekwoon hurried in and started looking around like he expected something was on fire. 

Jaehwan smiled sheepishly. 

"This came," Jaehwan said. He held out the offending box with both hands. Taekwoon squinted at it.

"From Hongbin," Taekwoon read.

"To you and me," Jaehwan said. "I really wanted to open it but I figured it'd be better if I waited for you since it's technically yours too so now that you're home open it, I wanna see what's inside."

Taekwoon's eyes narrowed in suspicion. He didn't look away from the box as he took off his shoes and pushed his hat into the hat cubby. Taekwoon's ears flicked as soon as they were free from the constraints of the beanie.

"If it's from Hongbin it can't be good," Taekwoon muttered to himself.

"Why?" Jaehwan prodded.

"It's Hongbin," Taekwoon said. He changed his shoes for slippers and grabbed for the box.

"But why?" Jaehwan followed Taekwoon back into the apartment, exactly like a puppy dog trailing his master, complete with a wagging tail—because that was exactly what Jaehwan was. Taekwoon's tail was just sticking out from under his oversized sweater and Jaehwan wanted to smack at it. He held himself back very hard and didn't.

"Go ask _him_," Taekwoon said.

"But why can't it be good?" Jaehwan asked.

"It's never good if it's Hongbin," Taekwoon said under his breath.

For a moment, Jaehwan was worried Taekwoon would throw the entire thing in the trash without opening it. His worry didn't last long. Taekwoon drew a sharp nail carefully down the center of the tape, the cardboard flaps popping open when their confines were loosened.

It was open!

Jaehwan bounded forward and snatched at the box gleefully.

"Let me see, let me see," he said.

"_No!_" Taekwoon's shriek pierced the air and Jaehwan's eardrums. He clapped his hands over his ears which was a valuable second wasted in chasing after Taekwoon. Jaehwan was long past his puppy years but shiba inus were nothing if not natural hunters. He bowled Taekwoon over in his eagerness to see what Taekwoon was hiding so stubbornly from him. Taekwoon yelped and clutched at the box that was inside the box tighter.

"It's mine too," Jaehwan protested. "Why won't you let me see?"

"Because I said so," Taekwoon said, curling up around it. His tail swished side to side in agitation and smacked Jaehwan on the ear. Jaehwan yelped and it was Taekwoon's turn to protect his ears in vain, giving Jaehwan just the opportunity he needed to grab the hidden pearl and dash off. 

It was… a box. A boring black box. Jaehwan ripped open the lid and dumped the contents out onto the couch. Frowning, Jaehwan picked out the somewhat cylindrical object from the small pile. He craned his neck over his shoulder to see why Taekwoon wasn't chasing him, only to find his owner curled into a ball on the floor. Jaehwan's eyebrows did some perplexed acrobatics but then he just shrugged. There was an instruction manual and—

"Oh. _Oh._"

Jaehwan sat back on his haunches and stared at it. Contents: wireless remote control, batteries not included, and one vibrating butt plug.

"Oh."

There was a strangled scream, a flying streak of black, and a tail smacking Jaehwan in the face as Taekwoon scrambled to shove everything back into the box. But the damage had been done.

"It's for me not you!" Taekwoon said, clutching protectively at it.

Jaehwan's mind began working in overtime. The snatch of conversation he'd heard back at Hakyeon's house the week before between Taekwoon and Hongbin was making a lot of sense. An incredible amount of sense. 

"Oh," Jaehwan said again, words formulating in his mind. "You mean you wanna test it since it's for you?"

"No!" Taekwoon buried his face against his knees in abject mortification. 

"I'll help," Jaehwan offered, grinning widely. 

"I signed a contract!" Taekwoon wailed.

Jaehwan frowned, head tilting to the side, his tail hitting the couch cushions as he thought. "Contract?" Jaehwan asked.

That sounded familiar. Taekwoon had talked about signing contracts before.

"Like… the contract about vegetables?" Jaehwan asked, testing the waters.

Taekwoon nodded.

"But there's no vegetables right now," Jaehwan said. "What does the instruction manual say?"

"Not vegetables," Taekwoon said, voice extremely muffled.

"Of course there aren't vegetables," Jaehwan said. He couldn't imagine how vegetables would come up in an instruction manual on… Well. That.

"Contract," Taekwoon mumbled again.

Jaehwan blew out a heavy sigh.

What had Hongbin said? Something about Taekwoon needing to get laid? Jaehwan wasn't some blushing teenager and the sudden thought of something that wasn't a quick one-off with his hand got his blood flowing. Literally. He assessed Taekwoon more critically; he'd thought Taekwoon was handsome when he'd first seen him. Terrifying, but handsome. That thought had faded into the background replaced with the concept of 'owner' and 'cat' but so had the 'terrifying', because Taekwoon wasn't terrifying at all. In fact, at this moment, he was the opposite of terrifying, curled up into a ball with his tail wrapped around his legs. Taekwoon's face was completely hidden, but Jaehwan had seen it enough in these past few weeks to know that 'handsome' was still a good thought. Hakyeon had called Taekwoon 'cute' but _that_ Jaehwan just couldn't see. Maybe if Taekwoon was half the size and twice as fluffy.

Hongbin said Taekwoon needed to get laid, but the other question was, did Taekwoon _want_ to get laid? Jaehwan's tail wagged thoughtfully as he sniffed the air. Not that he could smell anything past that horrible cologne Taekwoon wore when he went out.

"What's this contract anyway?" Jaehwan asked.

Taekwoon finally raised his head, cheeks bright pink. "Adoption contract," he said.

"Hmm." Jaehwan pursed his lips as he thought. Vegetables he could understand, but… He squinted.

"What does the contract say? I have to eat vegetables and I can't have sex?"

Jaehwan didn't know someone could turn as red as Taekwoon was now, floundering and flailing for something to say, but the cat brought new meaning to turning red as a tomato. Jaehwan was fascinated. 

Taekwoon dropped his head again and mumbled something so softly that even Jaehwan with his sharp hearing could barely make out.

"'Do not initiate…?'" Jaehwan echoed. "Initiate what?"

He wasn't sure if he'd get anything more out of Taekwoon and was debating sneaking up and poking him when Taekwoon looked up again.

"...'intimate or sexual behaviour,'" Taekwoon finally managed, and looked like he wanted to die.

Jaehwan gaped for a few moments before he fell off the couch wheezing with laughter.

"_Intimate or sexual behaviour_!" Jaehwan couldn't stop laughing until it mixed with gleeful yips that the neighbours could probably hear.

Taekwoon just looked mortified.

It took a few minutes but Jaehwan did eventually stop laughing. It took another few moments to catch his breath until he could sit up without bursting into howling laughter again, but he managed, his tag tinkling as he rolled upright. In all the commotion, the catalyst for this entire episode had been forgotten by the wayside. Jaehwan looked at it, and then at Taekwoon, and then back at the tiny pile of chaos covered by a half unfolded flimsy sheet of paper. It was unattended and Taekwoon was so busy trying to turn into a rock that he couldn't have stopped Jaehwan if Jaehwan jumped and attacked it now.

Jaehwan turned thoughtful again. And then he shuffled forward, a half smile on his face; because he was trying _not_ to smile but he was also feeling rather pleased with himself.

"What if I initiate it?" Jaehwan asked.

Taekwoon mumbled something so entirely inaudible that Jaehwan didn't begin to attempt deciphering. He did move closer until he was sitting right in front of Taekwoon, close enough to poke at one of the cat's flattened ears.

"Taekwoonie?" Jaehwan tested.

This got a reaction—a flash of a snarl followed by an extremely sad whimper of defeat.

Jaehwan… was confused. So was Taekwoon, torn between following the contract, avoiding Hongbin's mocking laughter, and the problem that his nose was telling him Jaehwan was... quite willing to initiate something.

That was what got Taekwoon to look up again, and there was something incredibly strange about having Jaehwan so close to him that Taekwoon could read his own name on Jaehwan's ownership tag. Jaehwan's ears were perked up, alert, and he was staring straight into Taekwoon's eyes. Unlike Taekwoon's sharp pupils, Jaehwan's eyes were a warm liquid brown, softening the intensity of his gaze boring deep into Taekwoon's soul. Like Jaehwan was going to eat him on the spot.

Taekwoon wasn't too far off—that one movement had been the cue Jaehwan was waiting for, the little instinctive switch that came with Taekwoon's willingness. Reluctant willingness, because he was still frozen into place. But that was fine with Jaehwan.

He sniffed at Taekwoon, ignoring the cologne as much as he could. No warning; Jaehwan finally pounced. Not on the contested object. On Taekwoon. Taekwoon went down easy, surprised and unsuspecting. It made it easy to knock Taekwoon onto his back, to straddle him under Jaehwan's thighs. Taekwoon's ears flattened in surprise but it only lasted a moment. He went loose and pliant underneath Jaehwan and Jaehwan could scarcely believe he was doing this, his hands on Taekwoon's shoulders, pinning him to the ground.

It was still bright but Taekwoon's pupils seemed bigger, rounder than usual, the upturned corners of his eyes perfectly matched by his sharp cheekbones. Taekwoon's mouth was barely parted, lips not quite touching. His tongue flicked out to moisten his lips, leaving his lips wet and shiny.

At that point, instinct took over.

Jaehwan dove forward, kissing Taekwoon messily with no idea what he was doing. It was wet and sloppy and Jaehwan lapped at Taekwoon's lips until they parted again. Jaehwan licked into Taekwoon's mouth, pushing experimentally at Taekwoon's tongue with his own. He felt rather pleased when Taekwoon made a small noise that, to Jaehwan, meant he liked what Jaehwan was doing. At least Taekwoon finally seemed to have been startled out of the inaction he'd been startled into, his hands coming up to Jaehwan's waist.

Taekwoon's hands were _big_ and it was a nice, solid touch, warm and reassuring. They fit very nicely around Jaehwan's waist. Jaehwan breathed out a sigh of contentment into Taekwoon's mouth and nibbled experimentally at Taekwoon's lip. A growl low in Taekwoon's throat vibrated through both of them so Jaehwan did it again, filled with giddy amusement. Taekwoon hissed through his teeth and in the next moment he'd flipped them around so it was Jaehwan on his back, Taekwoon on top of him. Jaehwan opened his eyes—not knowing when he closed them—and now it was Taekwoon ready to devour Jaehwan, eyes wide and sharp, his breath growing heavy.

It was heady to have Jaehwan pinned under him like this, even as confusion and conflict tore at Taekwoon. Jaehwan's colouring was rich and golden, a sharp contrast to Taekwoon's own jet black. His hair was a deeper red gold, his ears brighter; Taekwoon couldn't resist licking up the pointed shell. Jaehwan shuddered from ear to tail, mouth parting, head falling back, neck exposed. Taekwoon nuzzled down Jaehwan's jaw, tongue lapping roughly at the sweat against Jaehwan's skin, a faint taste of salt. Taekwoon scraped his teeth along the line of Jaehwan's shoulder but was stymied by his shirt.

Jaehwan made a sound of annoyance and wriggled about, trying to pull his shirt off his head but got his arms trapped in his sleeves.

"Help," Jaehwan whined. "I'm _stuck_. Stop laughing and help me!"

Taekwoon stifled another chuckle and obliged, untangling Jaehwan from the confines of his shirt. He regretted it, immensely.

Jaehwan's skin was pale and smooth, his body slim and waist slender. His lips were glistening wet and Hongbin's comments came back to Taekwoon's mind. He'd kissed those lips. Jaehwan's lips were wet because Taekwoon had kissed him. There was a smallness about him that made Taekwoon shiver, some logical part of him pinging warnings he'd rather ignore. Taekwoon ran his hands down Jaehwan's sides, feeling Jaehwan's muscles shift under his touch. The shiba suddenly gripped Taekwoon's wrists, fingers digging tightly against the knob of bone, iron bands against the tendons. It made Taekwoon gasp and Jaehwan looked pleased.

"Take off your shirt," Jaehwan demanded. 

Taekwoon arched an eyebrow in amusement.

"I don't want to," he said, not quite holding back a smile. Jaehwan bared his teeth.

In one smooth movement Jaehwan sat up and grabbed at the hem of Taekwoon's sweater, tugging at it in a fruitless attempt at getting it off. Taekwoon let him struggle for a while before he yanked it over his head, much more smoothly than either of Jaehwan's attempts, and shook his ears free when they caught on the collar. Goosebumps rose on his skin. The apartment was air conditioned but it wasn't that cold. On the other hand, Jaehwan's eyes roved over the expanse of Taekwoon's chest. Taekwoon resisted the urge to hug his arms over his chest; he couldn't remember the last time he had someone look at him like this. Hongbin, probably. Hakyeon just told Taekwoon that he was cute.

But where there was always a mocking edge to Hongbin, Jaehwan was pure appreciation, which made Taekwoon even more self conscious. He really should work out more. Ever since he'd moved out his lifestyle had become even more sedentary. 

Seconds extended into a minute of Jaehwan just _staring_ at him. The anticipation made everything worse, the time giving Taekwoon's last two brain cells a chance to tabulate why doing anything was a bad idea. 

It was a good thing he didn't need to. Jaehwan leaned forward, more cautious than the first time but no less determined. He breathed in Taekwoon's scent, one that'd become familiar enough for Jaehwan to pick it up under the unpleasant sharpness of Taekwoon's cologne. It was warm but also a little cool, like a crisp autumn afternoon. Jaehwan nosed at it, licking at the join between neck and jaw and then down the line of Taekwoon's throat. The smell was strong there and the taste strange and tangy, bitter but not wholly offensive. Taekwoon shivered as Jaehwan dragged his tongue across the hollow of his throat and it tingled against Jaehwan's skin, the sensation travelling through his palms pressed against Taekwoon's chest, leaving Jaehwan feeling hot and tingly. But not unpleasant.

Jaehwan nipped at Taekwoon, worrying at the skin along Taekwoon's collarbone between his teeth. This time, to Jaehwan's surprise, Taekwoon didn't throw him off—Taekwoon let out a small breathy gasp, head tipping back, neck arched and exposed. It was a long, clean line. Jaehwan latched and sucked; he was rewarded by a soft, keening moan. So he did it again and then again, and then at Taekwoon's other collarbone. It was like a game—what would get the loudest sound out of Taekwoon, could make his grip around Jaehwan's arm tighten, how to make Taekwoon shift up against him because at some point Jaehwan had climbed onto Taekwoon's lap. It was like playing pranks—only _better_ because it was funny watching people get mad at him but this felt _good_. There was a blotchy line of teeth marks on Taekwoon's other shoulder and Jaehwan marvelled at it—that was _his_ work. And Taekwoon had liked it.

He was clinging to Jaehwan with one arm, his other hand pressed to the ground, the only thing keeping both of them upright because Jaehwan was leaning heavily against Taekwoon. Taekwoon's chest was nice and broad and solid. His skin was smooth and warm and Jaehwan breathed in the musk of sweat, nuzzling at the soft spot between Taekwoon's collarbones. Taekwoon was also trembling, and it felt like they'd crash to the floor at any moment, and it was a hard floor which would likely hurt. Jaehwan sat up reluctantly. He was glad he did.

Yes, Taekwoon was handsome—Jaehwan had established that several minutes ago rather firmly when he was still sitting on the couch and staring down at his owner. And then again when he'd gotten Taekwoon to take off his giant sweater. But this was different.

Taekwoon was covered with a faint sheen of sweat, leaving his skin glowing in the afternoon light. The line of purple bruises were vivid against Taekwoon's naturally pale skin, an even stronger contrast to Taekwoon's tail which now curled around his waist. Taekwoon wasn't ripped but he also wasn't a stick. He was a bit of a noodle with limbs but his chest was firm and muscled with a little bit of softness. The muscles in Taekwoon's arms were well defined, especially when it was holding up all of his weight. His lips were wet and pink, his tongue peeking out at the corner of his mouth, his hair pushed aside, damp with sweat. There was a small scar near the crook of his elbow that Jaehwan wanted to bite at, just because it was _there_. It was the sweat. The sweat that trickled down the side of Taekwoon's neck. That was the difference. And his eyes opened wide, a little dazed. And Taekwoon's tongue. And his lips. And the soft definition of his chest, his waist, his soft looking tummy. Taekwoon wasn't just handsome, he was _hot_. At the same time, Jaehwan could suddenly understand why Hakyeon called Taekwoon cute, because 'soft!' kept pinging at the edges of Jaehwan's thoughts. And then Taekwoon shifted and his muscles rippled—and because he was a bit noodly and definitely not working for a rock solid six-pack, it was mesmerising against the shape of his bones and it made the sweat on his chest glisten in all kinds of eye-catching ways.

Jaehwan swallowed, licking his lips. He was wearing sweatpants not jeans, a good thing, or he'd be a lot more uncomfortable. Taekwoon seemed uncomfortable. Jaehwan wasn't sure if he could touch, but they were sitting very close together because Jaehwan _was on Taekwoon's lap_ and when Taekwoon sat up, they… touched. 

He'd heard of seeing stars. Jerking off in the shower for the first time—good way to describe it. This? Jaehwan wasn't seeing _anything_.

Nerves fired like a cascade of sparks, little bursts reverberating through his bones. It felt so much everywhere else that it took a few moments for Jaehwan to begin processing what was going on with his dick. That had just touched Taekwoon's dick. Through clothes—multiple layers of clothes, namely Jaehwan's underwear, sweatpants, jeans, Taekwoon's underwear (probably)—but that only heightened the friction, the sensations. The strangled moan Jaehwan had thought was his own at first was Taekwoon, a low breathy sound that drew out even longer when Jaehwan grew bold and drew his hand down to palm at Taekwoon's crotch, tracing a line along the dip in the center of his chest.

Taekwoon's head fell back at the touch, lips parted, eyes half shut. His tongue and lips were very pink, and a soft flush had risen to Taekwoon's cheeks. Taekwoon seemed embarrassed over the sound because he bit down on his lip, hard. Just to check, Jaehwan brushed his hand over the tell-tale bulge and it was very much muffled.

There was something else too. Jaehwan had touched himself through pants, through jeans even, but it was one thing to be palming at your own dick because it was in need of some attention, and an entirely different theater when it was someone else's. For one, you didn't get any relief. For the other, it was much more fun, like discovering what keys to press on a piano to make it sound the best, only in this case, it was how to best make his owner squirm and make the softest, prettiest sounds. Taekwoon's eyes were slightly glazed over like he couldn't process what was happening, which just made it all the better. He could smell Taekwoon's arousal, cologne be damned, but Jaehwan didn't need his sense of smell to know that, not when Taekwoon finally _really_ responded, pushing up into Jaehwan's hand.

It was Jaehwan's turn to squeak in surprise, not expecting Taekwoon to actually do anything. It made him topple backwards, right onto the hard floor. Jaehwan grimaced, wrinkling his nose, and Taekwoon suddenly laughed.

"It's uncomfortable," Jaehwan grumbled. "I wanna go somewhere softer." 

"I…" Taekwoon's laughter died to be replaced with utter perplexity. "Like…"

"Bed?" Jaehwan suggested hopefully. His heart was pounding in his chest but he tried not to let it show. He couldn't tell if it was out of nerves, or anticipation. Jaehwan hopped to his feet, acutely aware of his… excitement, and Taekwoon's eyes on him meant Taekwoon was also very aware. It made Jaehwan feel shy, but he refused to cover it. Instead. He grabbed Taekwoon's arm and hauled him to his feet. Jaehwan was a lot stronger than he looked, something that Taekwoon didn't realise until that moment judging from his startled sound. 

Jaehwan dragged Taekwoon straight past Jaehwan's room and into Taekwoon's. "Because it's bigger," Jaehwan said—but really, he just didn't want to make a mess on his bedsheets.

Which meant… Jaehwan wanted to make a mess of Taekwoon's bedsheets? He shook his head to clear the thought and pulled a now unresisting Taekwoon in. The blinds were open but they were on the sixth floor—it was probably fine.

"C'mon, hurry up," Jaehwan said, all but throwing Taekwoon down. The moment Taekwoon was sitting, Jaehwan crawled onto his lap, this time pushing his leg against Taekwoon's crotch on purpose. It was a delight seeing Taekwoon's mouth fall open. His lips were very pink.

Before Jaehwan could lose his nerve, he pushed Taekwoon further up the bed, shoving aside the neatly made blankets. It was like someone else was controlling him, using his limbs and body, but Jaehwan was keenly aware of the thread count of the bedsheets, Taekwoon's rapid pulse beneath his hands, the heat running up and down Jaehwan's own back. It made him feel very warm. Too warm. His hands roved across Taekwoon's bare chest, touching every bit of him. And then Jaehwan laid Taekwoon down, the mattress shifting under their weight. It was much softer and much more comfortable. Jaehwan felt proud of making the right choice. Taekwoon's chest was nice and smooth, and Jaehwan rested his palms on Taekwoon's tummy. On a whim, he bent down and kissed it and Taekwoon made a small, sweet sound. Jaehwan licked a stripe up from Taekwoon's navel, and then mouthed at Taekwoon's weirdly shaped belly button.

He'd never done this before. It made sense that Jaehwan fumbled trying to undo the button and zipper on someone else's jeans. He still felt self conscious and pouted and grumbled cutely. 

"It's tight," Jaehwan whined. "So tight."

All of Taekwoon's jeans looked tight, but this one was _extra_ tight. Probably because something extra was making it tight. Taekwoon moaned softly when Jaehwan finally undid the fasteners and then again when Jaehwan tugged a little at Taekwoon's underwear, enough to free Taekwoon's hardening cock.

It wasn't like Jaehwan hadn't seen dicks before—he had one, to begin with. But it was different—this was a dick that Jaehwan was touching, and it wasn't his own, _and_ he was about to do something very different. Taekwoon covered his face with his hands, his ears a bright pink. 

Jaehwan had come too far. He couldn't stop now. Chewing at his lip, trying not to think too hard about it, Jaehwan ducked his head down and took Taekwoon into his mouth. 

Taekwoon keened, loud and unmuffled. 

It tasted... not weird, not bad, kind of salty, not sweet, not exactly bitter either, maybe more bitter than salty. Maybe a little like the rest of Taekwoon, when Jaehwan had lapped at Taekwoon's stomach, the taste he'd assumed was sweat. Jaehwan sucked at it, pressing his tongue against the underside. Taekwoon was louder than Jaehwan had ever heard him, gripping at Jaehwan's shoulder. He tried to swallow a little bit more of Taekwoon but it didn't work very well—Jaehwan coughed and pulled back, grimacing.

"Jaehwan—ahh!"

Taekwoon's mild concern cut off abruptly when Jaehwan licked his lips and then licked the head of Taekwoon's cock, Taekwoon's voice breaking into a high pitched moan. This time, Jaehwan dragged his tongue from the base all the way to the head, feeling exceptionally pleased with himself when Taekwoon's moans grew louder.

Mostly, Jaehwan decided, as he sucked Taekwoon's cock into his mouth again, it tasted like Jaehwan's own spit. Which was somehow less exciting than he thought it'd be.

Taekwoon's thighs gripped at Jaehwan's sides, holding him there. Every time Jaehwan did something—pressed his tongue against Taekwoon's cock, sucked a little harder, ran his lips up and then down his length, Taekwoon's legs would clench, sending blood and heat rushing through Jaehwan's veins. It was like he could taste the broken sounds that Taekwoon was making too, and that taste was sweet, and that sent tingles up and down Jaehwan's skin, pooling in his stomach, and then a little lower too. It was like earlier when Jaehwan had kissed Taekwoon, only now, with Jaehwan's mouth on Taekwoon's dick, Taekwoon's responses were magnified, and it was really easy for Jaehwan to tell that Taekwoon liked it most when Jaehwan pulled off halfway and then swallowed as much of Taekwoon again as he could, and he also really liked it when Jaehwan pulled back to just lick at the slit of Taekwoon's cock. 

Jaehwan was so lost in the game of how to make Taekwoon crush Jaehwan between his thighs and grip Jaehwan's shoulder hardest that he yowled in surprise when Taekwoon pushed at him, and when that didn't work, hooked a finger through Jaehwan's collar and hauled him up, leaving Jaehwan lying awkwardly half on top of Taekwoon, elbows digging into the mattress on either side of him. Something hard and warm pressed against Jaehwan's chest and in the next moment Jaehwan understood why Taekwoon had pulled him up. Taekwoon came hard, spilling hot over them both. It was weird and sticky and wet and hot and Taekwoon's head was thrown back, leaving his neck exposed and primed for biting. There were a few spots that were still white and untouched and Jaehwan surged forward, latching onto skin and worrying at it to leave a messy mark. He sucked at it until Taekwoon stopped shaking and his moans quieted into heavy breathing.

Jaehwan propped himself up on his elbows and grinned at Taekwoon.

"I just gave my first blowjob," he said proudly. And his scratchy voice proved it.

Taekwoon was probably too blissed out to be properly horrified but he still managed.

"_First_?" Taekwoon choked out.

"Yup. I did good right?" Jaehwan asked. "Right? Right?"

Taekwoon's eyes were frozen wide, but when Jaehwan went from poking his shoulder to poking his ear, he nodded slowly.

"I knew I'd do good," Jaehwan said. "Now do me!"

"_Whagkkk!?_"

"I've never had a blowjob either," Jaehwan said, ploughing through Taekwoon's panic. "But Hongbin made it sound like you have tons more experience than me—"

"Hongbin _what?_" Taekwoon hissed.

"Uh... said you needed to get laid?" Jaehwan ventured. "Y'know, last week, at Hakyeon's house. So I figured that meant you'd been laid. Before. With him. Probably?"

Taekwoon whimpered like a strangled cat and covered his face with his hands. Taekwoon did that a lot. It meant Taekwoon couldn't see Jaehwan's disgruntlement, or see Jaehwan at all, so Jaehwan grabbed Taekwoon's wrists and forcibly dragged his hands away. 

"You don't have to," Jaehwan said very seriously, although he knew he'd already asked and, like Jaehwan had told Hakyeon, Taekwoon usually gave Jaehwan what he asked for. But Jaehwan meant it. He wanted, but Jaehwan was pretty good with his hands and he'd already had his fun with Taekwoon, and could most definitely take care of things once he'd hid in the shower. The more he thought about it, the more he looked at Taekwoon, and more importantly, the more he looked at Taekwoon's _mouth_ the more Jaehwan... wanted.

Taekwoon was looking anywhere but at Jaehwan and if his eyes accidentally turned towards Jaehwan's direction, it was to look at a spot behind Jaehwan. So when Taekwoon suddenly met Jaehwan's eyes, Jaehwan froze, a chill running up his spine. He couldn't move. Taekwoon's hands on Jaehwan's shoulders were gentle and steady, and it was with a gentle and steady motion that Taekwoon reversed their positions, rolling Jaehwan over onto his back. Taekwoon held Jaehwan's gaze as he dipped down and caught Jaehwan's lips in a slow kiss, neat and chaste compared to Jaehwan's messy enthusiasm. Jaehwan shivered under Taekwoon's touch, as Taekwoon ran his hands down Jaehwan's sides again, his fingertips barely calloused. Taekwoon didn't bite nearly as much as Jaehwan did either, his lips brushing down Jaehwan's neck in brief butterfly kisses. He lingered at the jut of Jaehwan's collarbone, teeth sharp against his skin, but it was only for a second, leaving Jaehwan empty with disappointment and wondering if Taekwoon's teeth were sharp enough to pierce skin. Taekwoon kissed him like how Jaehwan had touched Taekwoon earlier when he'd run his hands over Taekwoon's chest. There was the same slow, reverent quality, Taekwoon kissing down the lines of Jaehwan's body, along his ribs, sucking lightly at Jaehwan's nipples—Jaehwan's pleased moans grew louder. It took Jaehwan a while to realise the bedroom was echoing with his own voice, that Taekwoon was kissing a line down Jaehwan's chest all the way to his navel and that it was Jaehwan whining and wriggling, and wanting more. 

"Up," Taekwoon said softly, a hand at Jaehwan's waist. Jaehwan obeyed in a daze, lifting his hips from the bed and understanding a moment later it was to make it easier for Taekwoon to pull down Jaehwan's pants and his underwear.

Jaehwan would've thought it'd be cold, but it didn't feel any different from when he usually took his pants off, but knowing that someone was looking at him made Jaehwan want to cover up with his hands even more than he'd felt earlier, back when he still had pants on. It would've been a futile gesture—Jaehwan was hard, wetness glistening at the head of his cock and nothing could've hidden it. Taekwoon's breath puffed against his skin warm and damp, and it both tickled and put Jaehwan at ease. He hadn't noticed he was nervous, not until he took a deep, shaking breath and let out a tangle of tension with the exhale. If Taekwoon sensed it he didn't let on, just placed a kiss on one of Jaehwan's hip bones and then the other, trailing down to Jaehwan's sensitive regions. Jaehwan heard his own voice like he was underwater, like something else was giving voice to the ache of anticipation that grew with every second Taekwoon's lips hovered near Jaehwan, near where Jaehwan wanted Taekwoon's mouth to be, but not _there_. Jaehwan whined, wiggling in place until Taekwoon stilled him with single touch to Jaehwan's hip. His pants were pulled down to his knees but that touch comforted Jaehwan and he opened his eyes. There was nothing to look at but Taekwoon's ceiling. He could imagine Taekwoon's calm but intense gaze, so strong that words dried up in Jaehwan's throat.

"Please," Jaehwan mumbled. "Hurry, please."

The touch of Taekwoon's lips disappeared, the damp, hot breath playing across Jaehwan's skin too. Jaehwan hadn't gotten a protest to form in his mouth yet when Jaehwan was hit with a sensation more powerful than he'd ever known. It played out inside of him all at once, crashing through his nerves like a sugar dosed puppy careening through an inflatable obstacle course. It hit him all at once and then came flooding back to him piece by piece, starting with Taekwoon's kitten lips against the tip of Jaehwan's cock and then the feeling of coming down Taekwoon's throat but first there was Taekwoon taking Jaehwan deep into his mouth, deep enough that Jaehwan's cock hit the back of Taekwoon's throat and apparently that was all Jaehwan needed as his orgasm ripped through him. It was the heat. The heat of Taekwoon's mouth, and then it kept _going_. Seeing stars, seeing nothing, seeing everything, the entire universe on the back of his eyelids, whatever it was, Jaehwan's vision exploded and then came back and then was filled with tiny, blinding starbursts. Taekwoon's mouth was warm, there was a nice warmness all over him, and lax heat spread through his limbs. He trembled with each breath, each one shakier than the last as he struggled to regain a semblance of conscious thought.

All he really managed was:

"Did you swallow my come?"

Which was, even for Jaehwan, a not-very-intelligent thing to say.

Taekwoon's response was a strangled moan, a choked laugh, and then to sprawl heavily on top of Jaehwan. 

"Easier to deal with," Taekwoom mumbled into the mattress. 

At some point, Taekwoon had taken off his jeans because when Jaehwan kicked free of his sweatpants, his legs tangled with Taekwoon's bare ones.

"Hey Taekwoon," Jaehwan said.

"Mmmgh?"

"Do we have batteries?" Jaehwan asked.

"Batteries?" Taekwoon asked, propping himself up a it to look quizzically at Jaehwan. "Why?"

"Because batteries weren't included," Jaehwan said, struggling to keep a straight face, "and Hongbin would be sad if we didn't at least try it out."

This time, Taekwoon turned so red that he ended up rolling off the bed to hide under it entirely, leaving Jaehwan to sprawl over the entire thing. The tag on his collar jingled as he rolled over, and as he wondered what and how exactly Hongbin's gift worked, Jaehwan knew that Eunju had been right. Taekwoon was going to be good for Jaehwan, and maybe it'd be getting even better.

**Author's Note:**

> mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm yeah.   
eventual sequel where they try out hongbin's gift on a double date with hakyeon and hongbin and in public??????


End file.
